United Kingdom

A senior Tory has called on the prime minister to call a vote of confidence if the local elections go badly Boris Johnson

Boris Johnson must hold a vote of confidence to reaffirm his leadership after the police investigation into the No. 10 party is over and if the local election goes badly for the Conservatives, a Tory MP said.

Tobias Eloud, chairman of the municipality’s defense committee, warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin could “exploit” the prime minister’s image as a lawbreaker following reports of fixed penalties for participating in No. 10 parties.

Elwood, an MP from Bournemouth East, told BBC Radio 4’s Today program: “I think the prime minister has made his intentions clear – he wants to stay – but this is bigger than the prime minister.

He said that because the scandal risks damaging the party’s reputation, Johnson owed the parliamentary party a vote of confidence.

He added that the Partygate scandal undermines the UK’s image as a “beacon of democracy”, eroding the high standards that politicians have set and historically upheld.

He warned that “this is something that Putin will undoubtedly use – how can a legislator be an infringer?” That’s not a good look. “

Eloud said he believes Johnson should resign now, as the war in Ukraine is likely to continue for some time, adding that it is not unprecedented for leaders to be replaced during a crisis, citing the replacement of the head of the armed forces. The United Kingdom in December with an admiral with no combat experience.

He said: “Every month, every year, European security will deteriorate far beyond Ukraine.

“Our great government apparatus, our well-oiled MoD [Ministry of Defence] machine, allows us to do just that – change people if necessary. Our approach to Ukraine will remain consistent, so I hope that we will not use the war as a fig leaf to avoid these difficult issues that we absolutely need to address.

The leader of the Scottish National Party in Westminster, Ian Blackford, said Johnson’s position was no longer resilient. He said on BBC Radio 4’s Today: “I think the public court will pass this sentence on the prime minister.

“Everyone knows that parties were held on Downing Street 10, everyone knows that the prime minister has been convicted.

“We can talk about parliamentary procedure and the fact that he violated the Ministerial Code as a consequence of his behavior. But the fundamental point here is that we have the first prime minister in history to be found guilty of breaking the law. The prime minister is there to abide by the law. “

This comes after Conservative peer David Wolfson left his post as justice minister on Wednesday after news that Johnson and Rishi Sunak had received a fixed notice of punishment for violating their own Covid laws by attending a birthday party. premiere at number 10.

Wolfson said he was resigning not only because of the prime minister’s own behavior, but also because of the official response. He said the behavior was in stark contrast to many in society, who “followed the rules at great personal cost, and others were fined or prosecuted for similar and sometimes apparently more trivial crimes.”